Nutrition

[JohnnyC]

How much do you eat on a ride?  Do you follow most of the advice out there and consume 60g of carbs per hour?

If so, what do you eat?

I usually feel sluggish for the last 40k and I'm beginning to think it might be down to nutrition earlier in the ride.
I can't stomach big lunches - for example if I bought 2 sandwiches I'd have to eat one and leave the other for later otherwise I suffer later on.

Would be keen to get advice from people who eat little and often.

[zigzag]

i can remember my most recent ride (300), felt good until the end, the food was:

*before the ride - a large breakfast - a bowl of porridge with fruits, about 1.5kg combined and a cup of tea
*during the ride - six bananas, a bottle of energy drink, a large muffin, a can of coke, two cereal bars
*after the ride - couscous with veggie curry and a bowl of greek salad

[perpetual dan]

If you dig around in “the knowledge” I’m sure this has come up before.

FWIW I eat something most hours, usually a cereal bar or small cake. I doubt they’re anything like 60g of carbs. I find pausing for an apple is a good pick me up later on. On a longer day out a decent breakfast before and a sandwich or pasty in the early afternoon works for me. Chips have never settled well while riding, but otherwise I listen to what my body says it is hungry for. Though, given this is the audax bit, I’ve never gone beyond a 200, so this might all fail me if I kept on going further.

[Martyn Wheeler]

Lots of cake!

Sent from my LLD-L31 using Tapatalk

[mattc]

I usually feel sluggish for the last 40k and I'm beginning to think it might be down to nutrition earlier in the ride.

How long are your rides?

[mattc]

If you dig around in “the knowledge” I’m sure this has come up before.

Yup. We like talking about food This is just one of many threads on the "Audax" board:

https://yacf.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=91276.0

I'd also recommend searching on "keto", as there is a whole world of knowledge about not NEEDING to eat every hour

[JohnnyC]

I'm really talking about 200k rides.

[Chris S]

I'm really talking about 200k rides.

Rather depends on your work-rate, and how much practice/training you've had.

If you're pushing hard and in the front 25% of the ride, you might need some extra food over and above normal background meals. Anything else, you should just be able to eat "normally"; audax is pretty easy-going pace-wise.

With a little practice, I've ridden a 200 totally fasted - no food beforehand or during. It's fine at a moderate pace. Out of practice, I'll usually need some supplementary food because I'm having to push harder, or I'm just feeling sorry for myself because it feels like hard work.

If you want to minimise how much you eat on a ride:

1. Practice so you're fitter.
2. Eat low carb/keto for three months to get your system used to fat-burning.
3. Practice riding fasted.
4. Keep your HR low (comes naturally with 1).

If you don't need to minimise eating, then fine - but I find harder rides (hilly or faster, or both) make it harder for me to eat.

[SR Steve]

Before a 200km DIY x GPS I usually have beans on toast for breakfast and between 2 and 10 SIS 40g mini energy bars during the ride depending on how hilly it is. So during a 200km with up to 1000m of ascent I would have two 40g bars and another 40g bar per additional 500m of ascent. I also carry between 2 and 4 gels in case I need a boost and have energy drink with additional electrolytes in my bottles. After the ride I have a protein bar and/or shake.

My diet is more varied on calendar events although still vegetarian and with a similar overall calorific intake.

I have never fasted, but my fuel intake on a 200km is generally lower than my output so I must be burning some fat. I tend to overeat on days when I'm not cycling and this keeps my fat reserves topped up.

[quixoticgeek]

You'd be surprised how little you *can* get away with eating on for a 200...

Today I did a 200k DIY. On the train to Enschede I had a baguette (about 250mm long), with 2 slices of cheese, a large cookie, and a packet of crisps. at 50km I had some fries with ketchup, and a can of coke, 100k in I had some M&M's and some "Crisp cheese savories" maybe half a handful of each. At 125k I had a slice of apple pie, and 400ml of fanta. At 180k I had a small handful of M&M's. and over the day I drank a 500ml bottle of coke. Total M&M consumption was 107gm.

My wahoo/strava think I burned ~4500kcal. I think I consumed about 2500kcal. but I'd need to do the maths more to be sure. I'm hungry now, but I'm not ravenously hungry. I was slow in the last 20k or so, but that's cos I came into the city...

Last April I had an ill-advised collision with flying insect, which resulted in a triggered gag reflex, and dumping of my stomach contents. I was 150km into a 300k Audax. My stomach refused to accept solid food, and I did the last 150k on about 600ml of coke.

If you have started the day with a full complement of glycogen (about 2000kcal), you've got enough energy to do most of the first 100k, as long as you drink enough water (your body needs water to burn glycogen).

I've been trying to lose weight, and have been doing so through cycling, a lot. I'm kinda used to being hungry on a bike ride... I may be faster if I ate better...

Anyway, the plural of anecdote is data...

J

[postie]

BEER!  A nice pint of ale 50km before the finish works for me